Hockey: Bruins gearing up for a repeat run

Sunday

Jul 17, 2011 at 6:00 AM

Bud Barth NHL

Only one thing is missing as the Bruins prepare for the start of their 2011-12 training camp.

Drama.

And isn't that a refreshing change? The organization and its fans have had their fill of agonizing holdouts, roster holes, controversies and playoff disappointments over the years. But, as defending Stanley Cup champions, the Bruins still face some huge challenges.

Like bull's-eyes on their backs every night, an exhaustingly short offseason, and that cursed malady CCH (Cup Celebration Hangover) — things that have prevented repeat champions since the Detroit Red Wings last won back-to-back in 1997 and '98.

But these Bruins are better equipped for that challenge than probably any champion in the last decade. Unlike the Chicago Blackhawks, who were forced to hold a talent fire sale after winning in 2010, the B's have subtracted just three players from the 20-man roster that finished the last five games of the Stanley Cup Finals.

One was defenseman Tomas Kaberle, a monumental bust anyway, who signed with Carolina as a free agent. Another was veteran Mark Recchi, who retired with his third Cup at age 43. The third was right wing Michael Ryder, who was terrific in the playoffs but got more money ($7 million) and years (two) than he was worth from Dallas.

The Bruins have filled those openings with Joe Corvo, a more physical defenseman than Kaberle; scoring machine Nathan Horton, who will be back after getting KO'd in Game 3 of the finals; and Benoit Pouliot, the tough ex-Montreal Canadien who was the fourth overall pick in the 2005 draft.

Those look like pretty good swaps from here.

Plus, there are young players in Providence ready to bust down the door to Boston. Defensemen Steven Kampfer and Matt Bartkowski and forwards Jordan Caron, Max Sauve and Jamie Arniel could play on a lot of NHL teams right now, and someday you might be able to add the underperforming Zach Hamill to that list.

And don't forget recent draft picks Dougie Hamilton, Jared Knight and Ryan Spooner, who are destined for Boston in a few years.

All of which means some heated competition for roster spots at training camp, which means hungrier players, which ultimately means a stronger team.

Hey, when it rains, it pours.

The B's haven't yet signed restricted free agent Brad Marchand, one of the real heroes of their Cup run, but it's just a matter of time. They have plenty of room under the salary cap to match any offer Marchand might receive, and they will.

After announcing defenseman Adam McQuaid's three-year contract extension on Thursday (starting in 2012-13 for a reported $4.71 million), general manager Peter Chiarelli said signing Marchand was his “priority.”

Chiarelli wouldn't characterize exactly where the negotiations stood, saying: “I'm just not going to comment every time I go to the media. There's been discussions. We feel there's been progress, and that's where I'll leave it.”

The GM also said no other extensions are in the works.

McQuaid and Marchand are just two of 12 core players who are under 30, which signals this team's strength for years to come.

Tyler Seguin is 19, Marchand and Milan Lucic are 23, McQuaid and Tuukka Rask are 24, David Krejci and Pouliot are 25, Horton and Patrice Bergeron are 26, and Johnny Boychuk, Daniel Paille and Gregory Campbell are 27. Rich Peverley is only 29.

At 37, goalie Tim Thomas is the graybeard of the group, but he's good for another two or three years. The oldest skaters, at 34, are Zdeno Chara, Shawn Thornton, Corvo and Marc Savard, who probably won't be back (if he's smart).

When you tote them all up, the Bruins have 23 regulars returning, if you include Kampfer and Savard, both of whom were injured at season's end. That's a full roster plus three, but training camp could switch around a few of the pieces, although why would you fiddle much further with the great chemistry that group had while winning the Cup?

Think it's not hard to win a Stanley Cup? Think back to what the Bruins did and how they did it, and you can appreciate the tiny margin for error that exists for a Cup champion these days.

First of all, they got a career season from Thomas, and an even better playoffs. Had he not been everything he was — a Vezina Trophy-winning goalie who set an NHL record for save percentage (.938) during the regular season, and a Conn Smythe winner in the playoffs with the second-best save percentage in finals history (.972) — do you think the Bruins could have survived three Game 7s?

Secondly, had coach Claude Julien not decided to move Dennis Seidenberg alongside Chara after the first two games of the Montreal series, the Bruins might not have made it into the second round.

That shutdown pairing turned out to be the decisive factor in handcuffing players like the Flyers' Mike Richards and Danny Briere, Tampa Bay's Martin St. Louis and Vincent Lecavalier, and Vancouver's Henrik and Daniel Sedin.

Plus, look at how Marchand blossomed into a star and how Chris Kelly nearly tripled his output, from five points in 24 regular-season games with Boston to 13 points in 25 postseason games. If either of those things doesn't happen, the Bruins probably don't go all the way.

And what if Chiarelli never acquires Kelly in the first place? The guy was terrific at both ends of the ice in the playoffs.

Then there's Ryder. The guy who faded in and out of focus all season long had a high-definition postseason. Not only did he swat away a shot in the crease during that double-overtime Game 5 victory over Montreal, but he finished with 8-9-17 totals in 25 games.

Extrapolate that production over 79 games — the number he played during the regular season — and not only would he have had a 25-goal, 53-point season (instead of 18-23-41), but probably a new Boston contract and a shot next year at a repeat.

Then there's the injury situation. True, the B's were without Savard, but they had been accustomed to that, losing him for good in January. And they lost Horton in Game 3 of the finals, but they had built up so much team momentum by then, nothing could stop them.

Aside from those two losses, they didn't have a real crushing injury despite playing 107 energy-sapping, joint-straining games that push players to their physical outer limits.

Can that possibly happen again? We're going to find out starting in October.